Senior honored for golf excellence, leadership skills and community service
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla., June 9, 2023 – The LPGA Foundation today announced that Ami Gianchandani of Yale University has been awarded the 2023 Dinah Shore Trophy, cementing her status as one of the top collegiate female players who has made an impact on the course through her leadership and on society through charitable endeavor.
The Dinah Shore Trophy recognizes female collegiate golfers who excel in both academics (3.2 on a 4.0 scale) and athletics – playing in at least 50% of the team’s scheduled events – while maintaining a 78.00 or less scoring average. In addition, nominees must demonstrate outstanding leadership skills and community service.
For nearly a decade, Friends of Golf (FOG) has supported the efforts of the LPGA Foundation to help provide this award to the country’s top collegiate golfers and community leaders. As part of their support, FOG contributed to the $10,000 grant that will be awarded to the women’s golf program at Yale University.
"It is an honor to receive this award and I would like to express my sincerest appreciation to the LPGA Foundation and Friends of Golf,” said Gianchandani. “Not only am I humbled to follow in the footsteps of so many talented golfers and remarkable people, but I am also overcome with gratitude from my experiences over the last few years. Yale was a place that truly enabled my love of the classroom, furthered my love of golf, and fostered a passion for community service. Also—the unconditional support I have received from my family, friends, and coaches has been amazing and allowed me to become the best version of myself.”
Gianchandani, of Watchung, New Jersey, has made waves on the course and in the community during her time at Yale. She didn’t waste any time making a name for herself either, becoming just the second player in Yale women’s golf history to win Ivy League Player and Rookie of the Year simultaneously in the 2018-19 season. During her sophomore year, Gianchandani broke the program record by shooting a 65 in the second round of the Yale Women’s Fall Intercollegiate en route to winning the individual championship.
Despite the COVID-19 pandemic cancelling the 2020-21 season, she came out of it playing some of her best golf. In fact, Gianchandani won two individual titles and led Yale to the team championship in each of those tournaments. This stellar play secured Ivy League Player of the Year honors for a second time.
Gianchandani has certainly made a name for herself at the collegiate level, but she also has plenty of experience on the national stage. The two-time Yale women’s golf captain has competed in the U.S. Women’s Amateur and the U.S. Women’s Amateur Four-Ball Championship three time each. Gianchandani also qualified for and played in the 2022 U.S. Women’s Open at Pine Needles, missing the cut by just one shot.
As for the classroom, Gianchandani maintained a 3.57 GPA as a Statistics and Data Science major. She was the Ivy League’s sole representative on the NCAA Division I Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) and even served as vice chair. She also served on the executive board of Yale's SAAC.
Some of Gianchandani’s best work has come in her community. She earned Yale Athletics' Thomas W. Ford Award this past year, presented annually to student-athletes who during the past four years have demonstrated a commitment to strengthening the relationship between Yale Athletics and the youth in the New Haven community. She has spent more than 200 hours mentoring students through Code Haven and The First Tee. Gianchandani is also a co-founder of Accel Golf, a golf statistics program used by golfers at all levels worldwide.
With one year of intercollegiate athletics eligibility left, Gianchandani plans to attend Auburn University where she will pursue a Certificate in Business Analytics.
Former winners of this prestigious award include current LPGA Tour players Stacy Lewis (University of Arkansas, 2007) and Amy Olson (North Dakota State University, 2012), as well as Golf Channel personality and former player Amanda Blumenherst (Duke University, 2008, 2009).
The LPGA Foundation first announced the Dinah Shore Scholarship Fund in March 1994 in honor of the late Dinah Shore, a Vanderbilt University graduate and an honorary member of the LPGA and World Golf Halls of Fame. The Dinah Shore Trophy Award has contributed more than $200,000 to women's collegiate golf programs, including this year.
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